Warehouse Protection

Warehouse Protection: Every Safety Product for the Warehouse, in One Place

Warehouse protection does three jobs. It keeps vehicles off people, racking, walls and services. It keeps people on safe routes, away from forklifts and plant. And it keeps edges and openings guarded where people and goods move between levels. We supply the products for all three from one stock: Armco and Traffic Shield crash barriers, hi-vis rack and column protectors, demarcation, key clamp rail, pallet gates and self-closing safety gates.

This page is the overview. Use it to work out which product goes where, then follow the link to that range's buying guide for sizes and specifications. Send us a plan of the site and our free design service will do the matching for you, with a quote within one hour in working hours.

Pick the Product by What You Are Protecting

Stopping Vehicles: Runs or Points

Vehicle protection comes in two forms, and choosing the right one is the biggest decision on most warehouse jobs.

A continuous run: Armco and Traffic Shield

Where vehicles travel along a wall, a door line, a loading bay or a route, you need a run of barrier. Armco crash barriers are corrugated galvanised steel beams, 3500mm long and 3mm thick, on bolt-down or cast-in posts, for inside and outside. Traffic Shield is an Armco-type barrier in traffic safety yellow for internal routes, made from 11 gauge steel. The Armco guide covers quantities, posts, ends and corners.

A single point: protectors and guards

Where forklifts catch one spot again and again, such as a rack end, a column, a corner or a pipe run, a point protector is cheaper and more precise. Our warehouse safety barriers are hi-vis protectors in galvanised steel, powder coated RAL 1021 yellow, in heights from 500mm to 1500mm. The same guide covers Rack Shield guards for racking and the Track Shield door guard. That range has been designed and tested in accordance with BS EN 15512:2009.

Keeping People on Safe Routes

Vehicle routes should be kept apart from pedestrian walkways wherever possible. There are two ways to mark the line.

• Demarcation, where the line moves. Demarcation systems are freestanding hi-vis posts on heavy-duty 25kg PVC bases, carrying two-colour chain. Nothing is fixed to the floor, so the line can move as the layout changes. Demarcation marks a boundary. It is not a vehicle barrier.
• Key clamp rail, where the line is fixed. A rail built from key clamp fittings and galvanised tube bolts together with a hex key and no welding, and we cut the tube to length free. Ready-to-fit key clamp handrail kits cover standard runs. If a section is damaged, it can be taken out and replaced on its own.

Where people need a way through a rail, fit a self-closing safety gate. It closes automatically behind the user, so the opening is never left open.

Guarding Mezzanine Edges and Openings

Mezzanines, platforms and fixed ladders need the edge kept closed while people and goods pass through.

• Goods: mezzanine pallet gates keep one side of the loading opening protected at all times, so pallets can be loaded and unloaded without leaving the edge open.
• People: self-closing safety gates close off openings in guardrail at platforms, walkways and mezzanine access points. Single gates suit openings up to 1m, double gates up to 1.8m.
• Ladder tops: full height gates give 1100mm high protection at the top of fixed ladders.

Read safe mezzanine access: barriers, gates and platforms for how the pieces fit together.

Planning Protection for a Whole Site

Walk the site with a plan and mark three things.

1. Where vehicles run close to walls, doors, racking and columns. That is where crash barriers and protectors go. Use a run along routes and walls, a point protector at single points.
2. Where people walk or stand near vehicles or plant. That is where demarcation or rail goes.
3. Where anyone works next to a drop, such as a mezzanine edge or a ladder top. That is where gates go.

Points that have already been hit are the first priority. Loading bays, high traffic areas and hazardous zones should get extra protection. Racking needs particular attention: BS EN 15512 states that an upright protector should be positioned at the end of each run of racking between cross-aisles, and at uprights at aisle and gangway intersections.

The HSE's guidance on warehousing and storage, HSG76, is the recognised UK guidance on racking and site transport. Read separating pedestrians, vehicles and equipment and forklift impact protection for more on layout.

Finishes Across the Range

Warehouse Protection in Use

• Regatta, County Cork. A new distribution centre with a high number of forklift operations needed clear walkways and protection for walls, corners, racking and pipes. Traffic-yellow powder-coated tube marked the walkways, key clamp handrails and barriers separated storage areas, and handrails around critical points kept machinery off the building. Fisher Alvin has supplied Regatta for over a decade. Read the Regatta project.
• West Midlands Hire, Smethwick. A new MOT service area needed access restricting. Powder-coated key clamp fittings and tube, with single and double self-closing gates, closed off the office, admin and MOT areas and created a safe reception area for customers. Read the West Midlands Hire project.
• Industrial extension. Around 20 metres of Armco protected a new extension from delivery lorries and forklifts, with key clamp rail inside. Supplied within two days and fitted by the customer's own staff. Read the Armco project.

See more on our projects page.

How to Order Warehouse Protection

1. Sketch the area: vehicle routes, racking runs, columns, doors, walkways and any raised edges.
2. Mark what needs protecting at each point and what has been hit before.
3. Send us the plan or photos, or call 01905 779944 (Monday to Friday, 8am to 5pm).
4. Our free design service matches a product to each point. We confirm products, quantities and price within one hour in working hours.

Why Buy Warehouse Protection from Fisher Alvin

• One supplier, one order. Barriers, protectors, demarcation, gates and key clamp rail from the same stock.
• Next-day delivery on stock orders.
• Quote within one hour. A sketch or a list of what needs protecting is enough.
• Free design service. We work out which product goes where.
• Free tube cutting. Galvanised tube for rail cut to length before it leaves us.
• Founded in Birmingham in 1912, now based in Cradley Heath, West Midlands.

Warehouse Protection Questions

Which warehouse protection product do I need?

Start with what you are protecting. A run of Armco or Traffic Shield for walls, doors and routes. A point protector for a rack end, column, pipe or corner. Demarcation or key clamp rail to keep people on safe routes. Pallet gates and self-closing gates for edges and openings.

What is the difference between Armco and a warehouse safety barrier?

Armco is a continuous corrugated beam run on posts, for keeping vehicles off walls, doors and routes. Warehouse safety barriers are individual hi-vis protectors for racking, columns, corners, pipes and services.

Is demarcation fixed to the floor?

No. Demarcation posts stand on 25kg PVC bases, so the system is freestanding and can be moved. It marks a boundary and is not a vehicle barrier.

Can I protect a mezzanine loading edge?

Yes. Mezzanine pallet gates keep one side of the loading opening protected at all times, so goods can be moved on and off the mezzanine without leaving the edge open.

What finishes are available?

Armco is galvanised as standard with yellow powder coat as an option. Warehouse safety barriers are galvanised and powder coated RAL 1021 yellow. Traffic Shield is traffic safety yellow. Gates come galvanised or powder coated safety yellow.

Can I buy everything on one order?

Yes. Barriers, protectors, demarcation, gates, key clamp fittings and tube all come from the same stock, quoted together within one hour in working hours.

Can you work out what my warehouse needs?

Yes. Send us a plan, a sketch or photos and our free design service will match a product to each point and list the quantities.

Warehouse Protection Guides and Related Ranges

Read first: separating pedestrians, vehicles and equipment, forklift impact protection, safe mezzanine access: barriers, gates and platforms, mezzanine loading gates and why self-closing safety gates matter. See the work at West Midlands Hire and Regatta's Cork warehouse.

Ranges: Armco crash barriers, warehouse safety barriers, demarcation systems, key clamps and tube, key clamp handrail kits, pallet gates, self-closing gates and full height gates.